Despite being the inventor of the tank and responsible for campaign-winning tactics, by the start of the Second World War the United Kingdom had fallen well behind other nations in the design and build of armoured vehicles. Here, William Suttie uncovers the history of tank design from a government perspective and the decisions and failures that led to that state of affairs, and details the formation of the Fighting Vehicles Research and Development Establishment at Chertsey. Known as the Tank Factory, the Chertsey establishment sought to ensure that the United Kingdom became world-leading in the field of military vehicle research and design, and that the British Army would never be underprotected or outgunned again. Drawing on unpublished sources and photographs, this fascinating book reveals the establishment’s history, its groundbreaking research and its inventions and designs, including first-hand insights from those who worked there.

British Tank Production and the War Economy, 1934-1945 explores the under-researched experiences of the British tank industry in the context of the pressures of war. Benjamin Coombs explores the various demands placed on British industry during the Second World War, looking at the political, military and strategy pressures involved. By comparing the British tank programme with the Canadian, American, Russian and Australian equivalents, this study offers an international perspective on this aspect of the war economy. Topics covered include the premature contraction of the tank programme and dependence on American armour, the supply of the Valentine tank to the Russian authorities and the ongoing employment of the tank in the postwar peacetime markets.

The menacing silhouette of the T-54 tank prowling down streets of Eastern European capitals or roaring across fields in massive exercises remains one of the most enduring images of Soviet power in the early years of the Cold War. Its sleek and unmistakable shape was a warning to any nation that wanted to stand against the USSR. Yet all of this masked a flawed, outdated design, and when T-54s began to clash with the Western armoured vehicles in proxy wars in Southeast Asia and the Middle East they were found to be on the losing side of many of the battles. Containing 130 stunning contemporary and modern photographs, and written by two experts on Soviet armour, this authoritative book tells the complete story of the T-54, one of the most widely produced tanks of all time, including many previously unheard of variants.

From the birth of the tank to unmanned vehicles and the tanks of the future, The Tank Book offers a truly definitive look at over 400 different tanks, produced in association with The Tank Museum. Take an up-close look at British, US, Russian, and French tanks, meet key designers such as Mikhail Koshkin and Sir William Tritton, and understand the complex mechanisms behind such vehicles as the Centurion, Hellcat, SV Scout, and T-14 Armata. Incredible photographic tours take you inside a variety of tanks, putting you in the seat of some of the most formidable vehicles to ever go to battle in World War II, the Cold War, and beyond. Perfect for anyone with an interest in military history, The Tank Book is the ultimate guide to tanks and their unique past.

The Story of a World War II Gun and Tank Factory at Hayes in the London Borough of HillingdonAuthor: Nick HolderPublisher: Museum of London Archaeology SvcISBN: 9781901992885Category: HistoryPage: 48View: 5644

This is the fascinating story of a World War II tank and gun factory in west London. Using wartime documents, specially commissioned architectural photographs and - most importantly - the recollections of some of the factory's workers, the book aims to tell the little-known story of how ROF Hayes played its part in the war effort. The story of the home front has often been overshadowed by the story of great leaders and dramatic battles in histories of World War II, but this book aims to shed light on the important contribution of the Royal Ordnance Factories, and to show how the workers of ROF Hayes helped to win the Battle of Normandy in 1944 with the Sherman Firefly tank. After the war, ROF Hayes became a high security government records centre and so, most unusually, all the wartime buildings survived intact. Today, ROF Hayes has become ProLogis Park Heathrow, a major international freight and cargo hub, and an important local employer.

Coming of age along with Communist China, a bright, educated young engineer represented its elite base of support. The author, a historian, follows him through those tumultuous years, from total commitment to political prison and thence to rehabilitation.

Behind the camouflage name OKH Toy Factory plans to build a new tank factory in Austria were hidden. Most secret were all plans to build the tank works and to run the production. By building this wide spread factory, the small village of St. Valentin was rapidly developed to a most important armament place in the Third Reich. Although hindered by war restrictions the tank factory was growing from 1941 - 1945 to become biggest manufacturer of Panzerkampfwagen IV. The author, Michael Winninger, used original documents of the former Nibelungenwerk GmbH and official authorities as well as photographs for his deep research. He lives in closest distance to the former Nibelungenwerk and was researching the topic for years. This book is the standard publication on the most important German tank manufacturing company of World War II.REVIEWS an excellent book, thoroughly researched and it tells a story that is seldom told. The privations of many who worked in the camp and the terrible efficiency of the Nazi regime are all chronicled in a sensitive and readable way. I would highly recommend this title.Military Modelcraft International

As the German Blitzkrieg brings the Soviet Union to its knees in 1942, a regiment of women aviators flies out at night in flimsy aircraft without parachutes or radios to harass the Wehrmacht troops. The Germans call them “Night Witches” and the best of them is Lilya Drachenko. From the other end of the world, photojournalist Alex Preston arrives to “get the story” for the American press and witnesses sacrifice, hardship, and desperate courage among the Soviet women that is foreign to her. So also are their politics. While the conservative journalist and the communist Lilya clash politically, Stalingrad, the most savage battle of the 20th century, brings them together, until enemy capture and the lethal Russian winter tears them apart again.

Guide's Life is an autobiographical memoir by Mikel W. Dawson. The book chronicles the author's life as a professional guide and a distinguished 23-year military career, including time spent as a member of the 7th ARCOM from 1993 until 2004. Growing up on a farm in southwest Idaho, Dawson graduated from the Greenleaf Friends Academy in 1974 and worked as a diesel mechanic, spending his spare time with horses. Dawson eventually met a wilderness outfitter and was offered a job as a guide. He spent several seasons as a guide in the Salmon River Wilderness Area in central Idaho, before moving to Denmark. Dawson joined the 25th Army Band, Idaho National Guard in 1983, eventually transferring to the 104th Division, changing to MOS 11B, and becoming a drill Sergeant in the Army Reserve, and then transferring to the 321st Combat Engineers. After moving to Denmark, the author transferred to the 7th Army Reserve Command (ARCOM) and went on to earn the Meritorious Service Medal and the Bronze Star following assignments in Bosnia, Ukraine, Kosovo, Kuwait, and Iraq. Guide's Life chronicles the author's adventures, experiences and trials during these 23 years of service. Mikel W. Dawson grew up a country boy in rural Idaho. Following a distinguished career in the military, the author now resides in Lintrup, Denmark where he runs his own business shoeing horses. In addition to his writing and his work with horses, the author enjoys metalworking, studying history, and travel. Publisher's website: http: //sbpra.com/MikelWDawson

"Misa brings his acclaimed text up to date by examining how today's unsustainable energy systems, insecure information networks, and vulnerable global shipping have helped foster geopolitical risks and instability. A masterful analysis of how technology and culture have influenced each other over five centuries, Leonardo to the Internet frames a history that illuminates modern-day problems and prospects faced by our technology-dependent world

It could be said that the T-34 was the tank that won the Second World War. In total 57,000 were produced between 1941 and 1945. Stalin's tank factories outstripped Hitler's by a factor of three to one, and production of the T-34 also exceeded that of the famed American M4 Sherman. ?Not only did this output swamp German panzer production, the T-34 was a robust no frills war-winning design Ð easy to manufacture and reliable. Its sloping armour was innovative at the time and its wide tracks suited it to off-road warfare. Crucially it required little maintenance in comparison to German tanks, and its chassis was used as the basis for a range of assault guns, the SU-85, SU-100 and SU-122.?Anthony Tucker-Jones's photographic history of this exceptional armoured vehicle follows its story through the course of the war, from its combat debut against the Wehrmacht during Operation Barbarossa, through the Red Army's defeats and retreats of 1941 and 1942 to the tide-turning victories at Stalingrad and Kursk and on through the long, rapid Soviet advance across Ukraine and Byelorussia to Berlin. ?As well as a range of rare archive photographs and photographs of a surviving example of the T-34, the book features specially commissioned colour illustrations.

'thoroughly researched and compelling . . . a chilling account' - The Sun Herald An eye-opening account of Australian combat history, untold . . . until now. In 1969 a ragtag unit of 39 men were thrown together at Nui Dat, Vietnam. It was so slapdash a group it didn't even have an officer or sergeant in charge. A rugged ex-Royal Marine stepped forward to take the lead. Jim Riddle was only an acting corporal but he knew enough of war to keep these young diggers alive. When the platoon was involved in a high-risk ambush Riddle proved his leadership skills, bringing his men through unscathed and leaving the battlefield littered with enemy bodies. Despite their success, immediately afterwards the platoon was disbanded. According to the army they'd never existed – theirs was a ghost platoon. Frank Walker details what happened at that ambush and why the army buried their existence, and the secrets that went with it. His findings are a shocking indictment of the long-term effects of war. The men of the platoon – who'd fought so hard for their country – had to fight again to reveal the truth. But the price they all paid was far too high. Ghost Platoon is a gripping story of the soldiers who should never be forgotten . . . or denied.

From a cold war peak of some $1000 billion per annum, world military expenditure has declined by about 40% since 1990, reaching its lowest level for thirty years. With such significant decline in global public expenditure committments to the defence sector, a substantial and lasting peace dividend was anticipated. Most governments believed that market forces, left more or less to their own devices, would deal effectively with this major exogenous shock and generate sufficient new economic activity to allow increased public expenditure on health, education and welfare. The approach of this book is to challenge the fundamental but flawed belief that a substantial and lasting peace dividend could be secured through market solution alone. The principal assertion is that market adjustment by itself cannot deliver such a dividend.The book focuses on the major aspects of the economic, business and security consequences of post Cold War defence expenditure reduction. Key problems obstructing optimal market response are identified and possible remedial action by government and others is considered.

Although common wisdom and much scholarship assume that "big government" gained its foothold in the United States under the auspices of the New Deal during the Great Depression, in fact it was the Second World War that accomplished this feat. Indeed, as the federal government mobilized for war it grew tenfold, quickly dwarfing the New Deal's welfare programs. Warfare State shows how the federal government vastly expanded its influence over American society during World War II. Equally important, it looks at how and why Americans adapted to this expansion of authority. Through mass participation in military service, war work, rationing, price control, income taxation, and the war bond program, ordinary Americans learned to live with the warfare state. They accepted these new obligations because the government encouraged all citizens to think of themselves as personally connected to the battle front, linking their every action to the fate of the combat soldier. As they worked for the American Soldier, Americans habituated themselves to the authority of the government. Citizens made their own counter-claims on the state-particularly in the case of industrial workers, women, African Americans, and most of all, the soldiers. Their demands for fuller citizenship offer important insights into the relationship between citizen morale, the uses of patriotism, and the legitimacy of the state in wartime. World War II forged a new bond between citizens, nation, and government. Warfare State tells the story of this dramatic transformation in American life.

RUSSIA'S WAR is the epic account of the greatest military encounter in human history. In a vivid, often shocking narrative, Richard Overy describes the astounding events of 1941-45 in which the Soviet Union, after initial catastrophes, destroyed Hitler's Third Reich and shaped European history for the next half Century.